Discover Your Bliss

The year of fun

Every year I usually have a theme.  This year's theme is fun. 

Now, I'm not going to stop doing things like paying my rent or getting my eyes checked - yet - I am going to take a serious (yet fun) look at my decisions, what I do and how I fill my time.

Many people will tell you - Just do what you love and the rest will fall into place.  What if you're not sure what you love to do or think is fun?  As silly as it sounds, not knowing what you like to do is a more common problem than many realize.

During the coming year - I will not only make choices to have fun but also examine to what degree of fun I'm actually having. 

I love to take pictures.  For the most part I find it to be fun - yet the thought of being told what pictures to take - just doesn't interest me - so a professional photographer is off my occupation list, yet photography does register a certain level of fun.  Now, this doesn't eliminate me from getting paid to take pictures or have photography as part of my occupation - it's just the sole focus part that I realized isn't for me. 

You might be thinking - Wow, a year of having fun, what's the point of that - don't you usually have fun?

The answer is yes and no.  Yes, I have fun - especially when I'm around other people - yet when it comes to being by myself (or some might say with myself), I often falter to responsibility and a default of the not-so-fun.     

Somewhere inside of me, I must feel like having fun isn't the road to success, yet another part of me knows fun is the key to unlock my creative door of living.  

I'm currently in the process of deciding whether or not to keep this blog or transition it into another blog specific to the year of fun.  I'll let it marinate and get back to you.  After all, choosing which one will be more enjoyable is the year's theme. 

How do you know when you're having fun?  What's one thing you can make more fun today?

I'd love to hear your comments and discoveries. 

Breathe in the present moment

Just a reminder to breathe in the present moment today (and everyday). 

Feeling challenged?  Close your eyes, take a deep breath and follow that air (mentally) as you breathe.  That's it - just one breath and you're in the present moment - simple as that. 

Anytime you feel stressed, worried, tense, concerned, etc. - just pause, breathe and relish the moment (no matter how you feel).  It's that connection to the present moment that will begin to bring you calm, peace and clarity. 

Feeling happy, joyous or excited - do that same breath and it will anchor you deeper into the present moment. 

Many positive emotions are positive because you're already experiencing some of that present moment.  Even if it's just a taste. 

Think about it - when you're experiencing negative emotions (or something that you'd rather not feel) - where are you?  The past?  The future? 

By aligning yourself with the present moment, you can begin to shift to more positive emotions - even if it's allowing yourself to be and feel sad.  Sadness becomes a positive emotion when you allow yourself to drink it in in the present moment.

What are you willing to practice today?  How can you begin to incorporate the present moment into your daily life? 

I'd love to hear your comments and discoveries.   

Do one nice thing

Are you tired of hearing all the worries and problems in the world?  Are you ready to set yourself on a path of creating real change? 

All you need to do is take one tiny step to start a lifetime of giving and contributing wonderful things to this world. 

DoOneNiceThing.com encourages everyone to do one nice thing each Monday (a day that many don't like). 

Not sure what you can do?  DoOneNiceThing.com is chocked full of ideas and resources to get you started on your "do one nice thing" path.  

What's cool is that the site puts up new ideas each Monday.  Right now you can make Halloween cards for children in hospitals as a great holiday "pick-me-up."  

What one nice thing that you can do today?  What goals are you willing to set in order to do one nice thing a week?  Start with doing one nice thing every month?  Every two weeks? 

I'd love to hear your comments and insights. 

Plan ahead for road trip music

Planning a road trip?  Don't forget to plan your tunes along the way. 

If you like to listen to the radio, then you might want to visit radio-locator.com. 

Just plug in the various cities you'll pass through on your road trip and this cool site will list all of the AM and FM stations by frequency and genre - no more skipping around to find something you like. 

Simply print out the stations for the various cities you'll drive through and - presto - you'll have instant access to local traffic and weather - as well as - music that you'll enjoy. 

You might even consider searching your home city to find stations and genres that you'd like to listen to in your home area. 

What's the benefit of planning ahead?  How can you invest your time prior to a project, event, etc. that would support you? 

I'd love to hear your comments and insights. 

Secret stress reliever

To say I was a bit stressed and challenged with a recent situation might have been an understatement. 

I thought I'd share my quick-fix solution with you in hopes that it might support someone in cutting some much-needed stress from your life.

Ready?  Here's the secret...thank you notes. 

  

I sat down and wrote thank you notes to about 10 people related to my stress (the people weren't stressful to me at all - it was the situation).  And you know what?  It worked. 

The minute I wrote the last note, I felt calmer, more centered and overall just peachy.

Just wanted to share this stress-busting tip in case it might help a fellow stresser to dive into calm. 

Please note that the thank you notes do not have to be mailed or given to that person in order for it to work.  You can write a note to yourself or even a note to an inanimate object - like your car. 

Get creative and have fun with it!

What situation is currently creating the most stress in your life?  What thank you note might calm your stress into low gear? 

I'd love to hear your comments and discoveries. 

Cheap and easy stress relief - go outside

Even if you live in a big city, there's got to be some little patch of green (like a park or landscaped area) where you can visit for some needed stress relief.

Since I'm home with my family, I spent the morning sitting in the driveway with my cat Indy watching the trees sway in the breeze.  Indy likes to lie behind me in the shade. 

Was I reading a book?  No.  Was I talking on my phone or listening to music?  No.  Was I making my to-do list in my head?  No. 

I was just enjoying "being."  It's a powerful drug with an unlimited supply listed as the quantity. 

Breathe in, breathe out.  That's all you need.  And if you can put yourself in nature and soak up that energy, the stress will melt away even faster. 

What kind of "stress relief" prescription would you write to yourself?  What directions would listed on the bottle? 

I'd love to hear your comments and discoveries.  

The Stitch Fairy

Many moons ago, my pediatrician introduced my family to the stitch fairy. 

I'd sliced open my head and was back in my doctor's office getting the stitches removed.  As the doctor removed the stitches, he told me to put the stitches under my pillow and the stitch fairy will come and give me one dollar for each stitch (thankfully for my mom, I only had 7 stitches). 

Fast forward to a couple of days ago - we were all in the bathroom watching my mom remove the bandages from her foot and three of her stitches came out (the stitches are the dissolvable kind). 

As my mom took her shower, I had a fun idea.  What if the stitch fairy paid her a visit.

I sprang into action hand sewing the word "stitch" on a piece of paper and writing the rest.  Something about how the stitch elves heard that she'd lost three stitches and how she should have saved them in exchange for stitch money.

I drew a picture of the stitch fairy and placed the note and three dollars on my mom's pillow.  I'm so glad I came home to help her for two weeks while she recovers. 

When she announced she was going to bed, I quietly followed her to hear her reaction.  She laughed and thought it was so cool that the stitch fairy remembered her. 

The next night, I watched as she removed her bandage - yet no new stitches came out.  She was bummed. 

Maybe tonight or the next night - then the stitch fairy can fly down and give her a dollar for each stitch.

It's so much fun and downright blissful to return a favor my mom did for me when I was little.

What's something that has come full circle for you?  How does it feel to be on the giving end?

I'd love to hear your comments and discoveries. 

Ready to Spread the Gratitude?

Want to "bee" happy?  Want you gratitude to grow? 

Check out ButterBeeHappy.com and you'll find a community of people raising their energy through gratitude. 

You can peruse other people's gratitudesfor upliftment and there's a feature called the "honeycomb" that scans for happy thoughts similar to your postings.  

The Happiness Hotline lets you call-in and record an upbeat message for an online podcast and a blog with the latest happiness research. 

Just think how you can multiply your gratitude and happiness in a community of like-minded individuals.  Instead of the flu bug, you can spread the happiness virus. 

How does a community of like-mind individuals support you?  How does publicly posting your gratitudes each day shift your energy from privately recording them?

I'd love to hear your comments and discoveries. 

Rewards & Gifts of Living Through Intention

There are several areas of my life where I have been practicing living through intention. One such area is shopping for clothes & shoes.

You might be thinking - What? Living through intention that involves shopping?  How does that work? 

For years and years I only purchased items because they were on sale or a great bargain - a good fit and my absolute love of the item rarely made the list.

For the past two years, I've been practicing living through the intention of:  I am willing to purchase items that raise my energy and fit me amazingly.

For me that practice looks like picking up what grabs my attention in a store, trying it on, deciding what item(s) I'd like to purchase and then looking at the price (I do have some price guidelines for myself - like I'm not paying $100 for a t-shirt, etc.). 

Yesterday, I accompanied my movie buddy to a shoe store.  As he tried on various pairs of shoes, I looked around to see what caught my eye. 

On my "to purchase" list is a pair of shoes that will be comfortable, wear for hours, and be dressy enough to go with a skirt or dress, yet will work with trousers or jeans. 

Two pair instantly jumped out at me on my "I-like-o-meter."  I asked for both pair in my size so I could give a good walk around the store. 

My movie buddy gave me the thumbs up.  Another customer in the store said the shoes looked fabulous on me.  I felt fabulous in the shoes and started playing - Okay, let's see - it will go with this dress, and that skirt, and will work with jeans and the black trousers with the silver stripe.

After a few more laps of blister potential testing, I decided to purchase the shoes.

Most of the shoes in the store were in the $110-$150 range.  Living through intention, I knew I chose the shoes based on my like of them and not their price. 

The sales lady told me my shoes were $67.50.  I thought that was odd since all of the other shoes were at least $100.  It turns out that my shoes were originally $135 and they were on sale for 50% off - imagine that - I practiced living through intention of purchasing what I liked and as a bonus - I received $67.50 in savings! 

I am a money magnet!  It was as if the universe was saying - living through intention is the gift that keeps on giving!

How do you live through intention?  What's one thing you're willing to practice today regarding your intention?

I'd love to hear your comments and discoveries!

How to Create a Happy Holiday

What's one thing you can do right now - yes in October - to make your holidays happy? 

I challenge each one of you to pick one thing that you can do now in preparation for the holidays and do it - this weekend!

Just think of the stress you will save yourself if you do one thing right now.

It doesn't have to big - it could be simply creating a plan for your holidays or a list of gifts to purchase.  The bottom line is - Just Do It. 

I'd love to hear your comments and discoveries.